Trulli targets Toyota first win

Toyota's Jarno Trulli talks about his and the team's targets for 2007
Q: What's your general feeling about 2007 and the new car?
Jarno Trulli: From my experience you always have to be very positive about the next year,
because anything can ...

Toyota's Jarno Trulli talks about his and the team's targets for 2007

Q: What's your general feeling about 2007 and the new car?

Jarno Trulli: From my experience you always have to be very positive about the next year,
because anything can happen. We know that the 2006 season wasn't as good as we
expected, but we think we have the potential to produce a good car, and we know
that we can do at least as well as we did in 2005. All we have to do is work hard at
what we are doing, and hope the engineers have got it right on the car! I've heard
that they've made a good step in the wind tunnel. But it's too early to make any
prediction.

Q: How important will it be to have a reliable car?

JT: Sure, that was one of the weakest points last year. We lost several good
opportunities because of reliability, so it was really a shame. It was a disappointing
season for all of us, drivers and team, because we expected to have a better car, but
it was only competitive sometimes. It was actually a very difficult season. However, I
think we got a lot of good experience which will help us for the future.

Q: You qualified well in the last two races. How much progress did Toyota make towards
the end of the season?

JT: It's true that the car made really good progress by the end of the season, but you
always struggle to understand if it was due to the car or if it was due to the tyres. This
year we will have a better idea.

Q: You are starting a new three-year contract. What does that say about your belief in
the potential of the team?

JT: When you start working with a team, and straight away you have good results like I
did in 2005, you are very optimistic for the future, especially when you look at the
resources of the team, the capability and the potential. Last season didn't show the
true potential of the team, so from my point of view I needed a long-term contract in
order to have the continuity inside the team. I strongly believe that I can win races
with Toyota. It's not something that's going to happen easily but I believe Toyota has
the potential to do great things and eventually win the championship.

Q: Does a three-year deal also demonstrate that the team has faith in you?

JT: It shows that the team trusts the driver, and they believe in my potential, especially
after all the good results in 2005 when the car was good and reliable. As I say, one
season doesn't tell you everything. We have continuity in the driver line-up, on the
engineer's side, and what we have to do now is build up a team to make our car
quicker.

Q: You have one year of experience with Bridgestone, but the actual tyres have
changed. How do you feel about the tyre situation?

JT: I expected to have a bit of an advantage over the other teams, but the tyres we used
in winter testing are new and the tyres we used last season have nothing to do with
them. But for sure the experience we gained last year will be helpful. We have a good
relationship with Bridgestone, and they know us, they know our car, and they can
give us a direction to help us work better with these tyres.

Q: Do you think that having one tyre supplier will make the racing closer?

JT: No, I don't think so. I think the team who makes the better car and can exploit the
tyres will have a big advantage, even if the new tyres are easy to handle and easy to
understand. They can clearly show you the problems of the car, and in this case a
small problem can become a big problem for performance. We can probably see
some close races, and some others where the gap will be bigger.

Q: Toyota is celebrating its 50th anniversary in motorsport this year. Do you feel
part of that history?

JT: I think I'm part of the history, because I actually gained the first pole position and the
first podium for Toyota. My target is to get the first victory, and if I can, the first
championship! I really feel part of the company and family. It's an important target
this year, and I hope we can mark this target with some good showings and good
performances.